Send Medianews mailing list submissions to
medianews@twiar.org
To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
http://twiar.org/mailman/listinfo/medianews_twiar.org
or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
You can reach the person managing the list at
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
than "Re: Contents of Medianews digest..."
Today's Topics:
1. Scoping Sirius' Curious Car Count (Greg Williams)
2. Hubble's key camera shuts down again (Williams, Gregory S.)
3. Beijing secretly fires lasers to disable US satellites
(Williams, Gregory S.)
4. Attackers targeting new PowerPoint bug (Williams, Gregory S.)
5. CBS Newsman Jim Stewart To Retire (Williams, Gregory S.)
6. Virgin Galactic Unveils SpaceShipTwo Interior Concept
(Williams, Gregory S.)
7. LA: FCC Announces Details For Public Hearing On Media
Ownership (Williams, Gregory S.)
8. Lenovo, IBM recall 526,000 notebook batteries (Rob)
9. Microsoft sets price for Zune, songs (Rob)
10. U.S. homework outsourced as "e-tutoring" grows (Rob)
11. U.S. judge rules against Morpheus file-sharing (Rob)
12. ESPN pulls plug on cell phone operation (Rob)
13. HP used phishing-style e-mail, tracing software to track down
leaks (Rob)
14. Big cuts at NASA threaten aviation (Rob)
15. Frequent-flyer cashes in miles for space trip
(Williams, Gregory S.)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 01:07:23 -0400
From: Greg Williams <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Scoping Sirius' Curious Car Count
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Scoping Sirius' Curious Car Count
By Scott Moritz
Senior Writer
10/7/2005 7:01 AM EDT
http://www.thestreet.com/_googlen/tech/scottmoritz/10246148.html?cm_ven=GOOGLEN&cm_cat=FREE&cm_ite=NA
Sirius Satellite Radio's big numbers have a funny new car smell.
Sirius added 359,000 new users in the third quarter, nearly doubling its
year-ago increase. At first blush that looks far more impressive than
the 48% subscriber growth at rival XM Satellite
But it turns out that not all those new Sirius subscribers are actual
people.
XM and Sirius both count on arrangements with big automakers like Ford
(F:NYSE - commentary - research - Cramer's Take) and GM (GM:NYSE -
commentary - research - Cramer's Take) to power subscriber gains. But
where XM waits until a car buyer activates the service to add to its
new-user tally, Sirius sometimes starts counting as soon as a car with a
factory-installed radio arrives at the dealership.
So a number of those freshly minted Sirius subscribers could actually be
Chrysler Concordes sitting on a dealer's lot somewhere. Observers say
that kind of liberal math could be bolstering Sirius' growth --
especially now, as dealers are receiving a new crop of 2006 models.
Sirius' practice means the company can "call it a sub, even if it is
sitting under water on a dealer's lot in New Orleans," says one investor
who sold Sirius and holds XM.
Satellite radio has gone from a mere cult fascination a few years ago to
a hotly contested two-player industry. XM and Sirius are battling
head-to-head to capture the largest share of a potentially massive new
consumer market.
Delivering growth is paramount. The faster the growth, the wider the
doors are open to capital markets for future financing, factory
installation deals with big automakers and technology partnerships with
leading device makers.
Perhaps most important, routinely raising subscriber growth targets
encourages satellite radio investors to tune out the heavy costs and
massive losses associated with the business.
So it is a bit disconcerting to some industry observers that XM and
Sirius differ in their definitions of subscribers.
Sirius CFO Dave Frear says he recognizes that the two companies have
different policies when it comes to counting subscribers, but he
downplays the significance.
Frear says Sirius' lot-counting practice doesn't apply to all cars with
factory-installed radios. He adds that overall it represents less than
10% of total subscribers.
"There's a distinction without a difference," says Frear.
But an XM representative disagrees.
"It's important for people to understand that we have a different way of
counting subscribers," says the XM rep. "We count people who have made
an active effort to try the service, not by counting cars on the lots."
Of course, there are no federal guidelines governing how companies count
subscribers. And it is not surprising to see companies put the best spin
they can on the numbers they tally.
Counting cars, or even nonpaying users on promotional plans as XM does,
doesn't just pump up subscriber growth numbers. It can also help spread
the cost of acquiring customers -- a huge cost for these cash-burning
companies -- across a broader base. To be fair, while XM includes
promotional users in its subscriber total, it discloses its number of
freeloaders in its quarterly filings.
Beyond growth, Wall Street tends to judge upstarts by subscriber
acquisition costs, which reflect the amount of money it takes to reel in
a new user. For big-buck bonfires like XM and Sirius, lowering
acquisition costs can help soothe the Street.
Sirius finance chief Frear says the analysts he has briefed on the new
car issue "have decided that it's a big yawn."
Frear says he counts the car as a subscriber because that's when the car
company pays Sirius for the radio subscription. He says Sirius receives
the one-year subscription money upfront from the carmaker and defers the
revenue by booking it in monthly installments or amortizing it over the
life of the service contract. Sirius also books the subscriber
acquisition costs upfront.
"It makes sense for us to do it when we have two parts of the
transaction together," says Frear. "It's more symmetrical to take in the
cash and record the expenses at the same time."
Sean Butson of Legg Mason has been one of the first analysts to
highlight the impact of new cars on Sirius' subscriber tallies. Butson
says it's necessary for analysts to back out unsold cars from actual
subscribers when comparing the two companies' growth rates.
The bigger issue, says Butson, is that if a car goes unsold or if a user
doesn't activate the service after the yearlong free trial, they don't
immediately come off the subscriber count.
"To show up as a Sirius disconnect, it could be as long as 17 months,"
says Butson, who has a buy rating on Sirius and XM.
Stretching definitions to fuel Wall Street's growth expectations can
help give you an edge in a close race, but some observers say it
undercuts a company's credibility.
"It may be legal," says the former Sirius investor, "but at the very
least, it is slippery as hell."
--
Greg Williams
K4HSM
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.twiar.org
http://www.etskywarn.net
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:33:17 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Hubble's key camera shuts down again
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"
http://www.newscientistspace.com/channel/space-tech/dn10162-hubbles-key-came
ra-shuts-down-again.html
The Hubble Space Telescope's most frequently used instrument, the Advanced
Camera for Surveys (ACS), has shut down unexpectedly. Hubble's managers are
still investigating the problem, but they are optimistic that they will be
able to use the camera again soon.
ACS has three channels, which are essentially three different cameras. The
problem appears to be confined to the High Resolution Channel (HRC), which
has the sharpest vision, but is used in only about 10% of ACS observations.
It is often used for detailed observations of planets and other objects in
our solar system because its resolution is twice as good as that of the Wide
Field Channel (WFC), which is the instrument's most frequently used channel.
The WFC has been used to spot galaxies in the very early universe, among
other observations.
Hubble's computer shut the ACS down automatically at 1521 GMT on Saturday
when it detected that the power supply voltage for the HRC, which is
normally at 35 volts, had dropped to zero.
It is not the first time the ACS has had problems. It briefly stopped
working in June when its original power supply failed but was brought back
online when managers switched to backup power (see Hubble's main camera is
back at work).
The new problem, however, is "totally different", says Preston Burch,
Hubble's mission manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Centre in Greenbelt
Maryland, US. The power source itself seems to be working correctly - it is
the HRC's electronics that appear to be at fault, he says.
Vision loss
Burch is optimistic that the ACS and even the High Resolution Channel itself
will still be usable, although he stresses that the outlook could change as
engineers obtain new information about the problem.
Still, the problem could mean that the HRC will be able to use only half of
its normal field of view in future observations, Burch says. "We would have
to take more observations to cover a given area [of the sky], but that's far
from the end of the world for us," he told New Scientist.
Malcolm Niedner, deputy project scientist for Hubble at Goddard, agrees with
that assessment. "None of us is talking about the loss of HRC," he told New
Scientist. Losing half of the channel's field of view is being talked about
as "a worst-case scenario," he says.
Hubble engineers have more tests to do over the next few days and Burch says
he thinks they will understand the problem by the end of the week. "Our goal
is to be back on the air doing ACS science next week, but we can't make any
promises," he says.
Hubble is continuing to make observations with its other instruments in the
meantime.
Gregory S. Williams
AOL?IC/SAP Help Desk
865-425-4167
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:33:43 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Beijing secretly fires lasers to disable US
satellites
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/09/26/wchina226.xm
l
By Francis Harris in Washington
(Filed: 26/09/2006)
China has secretly fired powerful laser weapons designed to disable American
spy satellites by "blinding" their sensitive surveillance devices, it was
reported yesterday.
How it works
The hitherto unreported attacks have been kept secret by the Bush
administration for fear that it would damage attempts to co-opt China in
diplomatic offensives against North Korea and Iran.
Sources told the military affairs publication Defense News that there had
been a fierce internal battle within Washington over whether to make the
attacks public. In the end, the Pentagon's annual assessment of the growing
Chinese military build-up barely mentioned the threat.
"After a contentious debate, the White House directed the Pentagon to limit
its concern to one line," Defense News said.
The document said that China could blind American satellites with a
ground-based laser firing a beam of light to prevent spy photography as they
pass over China.
According to senior American officials: "China not only has the capability,
but has exercised it." American satellites like the giant Keyhole craft have
come under attack "several times" in recent years.
Although the Chinese tests do not aim to destroy American satellites, the
laser attacks could make them useless over Chinese territory.
The American military has been so alarmed by the Chinese activity that it
has begun test attacks against its own satellites to determine the severity
of the threat.
Satellites are especially vulnerable to attack because they have
predetermined orbits, allowing an enemy to know where they will appear.
"The Chinese are very strategically minded and are extremely active in this
arena. They really believe all the stuff written in the 1980s about the high
frontier," said one senior former Pentagon official.
There has been increasing alarm in parts of the American military
establishment over China's growing military ambitions.
Military experts have already noted that Chinese military expenditure is
increasingly designed to challenge American military pre-eminence by
investing in weaponry that can attack key systems such as aircraft carriers
and satellites.
At the same time, China is engaged in a large-scale espionage effort against
American high-tech firms working on projects such as the multibillion-pound
DD(X) destroyer programme.
Several spy rings have been cracked and the FBI is increasing the number of
counter-intelligence staff tracking the Chinese effort.
Gregory S. Williams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:37:35 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Attackers targeting new PowerPoint bug
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2006/092706-update-attackers-targeting-new-
powerpoint.html
By Robert McMillan, IDG News Service, 09/27/06
One day after patching a widely exploited flaw in its Internet Explorer
browser, Microsoft has a new bug to worry about, this time in PowerPoint.
Related links
Attackers have been exploiting a newly discovered bug in Microsoft's Office
presentation software in extremely targeted attacks, McAfee reported
Wednesday.
Researchers were made aware of the attacks when a customer submitted two
different malicious PowerPoint files, both of which exploited the same
vulnerability, said Craig Schmugar, a virus researcher at McAfee. Both files
installed malicious remote access Trojan software that then attempted to
connect to an outside Web server, he said.
Though McAfee is not releasing technical details of the exploit, the
security vendor says that it has confirmed that the attack works on three
versions of Office running on the Windows 2000 operating system: Office
2000, Office XP, and Office 2003. Other platforms and other Office
applications may also be affected, but McAfee has not yet had time to
complete its testing, Schmugar said.
Schmugar has blogged about the issue here
(http://www.avertlabs.com/research/blog/?p=95).
Microsoft issued a security advisory on the matter Wednesday, saying that
the issue affects users of Microsoft Office 2000, Microsoft Office 2003, and
Microsoft Office XP, as well as Microsoft PowerPoint 2004 for Mac.
Microsoft's advisory can be found here
(http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/925984.mspx).
As a workaround, Microsoft suggests that users open and view files using
PowerPoint Viewer 2003. This software "does not contain the vulnerable code
and is not susceptible to this attack," the advisory states. The PowerPoint
viewer can be downloaded here
(http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=428d5727-43ab-4f24
-90b7-a94784af71a4&displaylang=en).
Microsoft and other security vendors, including Symantec and McAfee, have
added signatures to their security products so that they can detect this
malicious code.
Over the past few months, attackers have focused on Office, exploiting a
number of undisclosed Office bugs in extremely targeted attacks, often on
government agencies or contractors. These attacks usually take the form of
an e-mail that has a malicious Office document attached and is sent to a
small number of target victims
This latest PowerPoint attack fits that pattern and was sent to a defense
contractor, Schmugar said. He declined to provide further details on the
intended victim.
Because the attack has been extremely limited in scope it is considered to
be a low risk for most users, Schmugar said.
News of the attack comes the day after Microsoft issued an emergency patch
for a widely exploited bug that affected the VML (Vector Markup Language)
rendering engine used by Internet Explorer and Outlook. Hackers are
exploiting this critical flaw in the browser via mass e-mail and on
thousands of Web sites, security experts said.
Microsoft's next set of security patches will be released Oct. 10. The
software vendor did not say whether it plans to patch this latest PowerPoint
flaw.
Gregory S. Williams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 12:40:28 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] CBS Newsman Jim Stewart To Retire
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain
Veteran Journalist Broke Many Major News Stories During 37-Year Career
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/09/28/eveningnews/main2049557.shtml
(CBS) CBS News correspondent Jim Stewart, a veteran journalist who broke a
spate of major stories during a distinguished 37-year career, is retiring.
Stewart, who joined CBS News in 1990 and was based in the Washington, D.C.,
bureau, has covered the Justice Department, FBI, CIA and counter-terrorism
issues since 1994. He has broken some of the biggest stories on his beats
during a time when the nation was focused on the war on terrorism.
Most recently, Stewart was a part of the CBS News coverage of the fifth
anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, including a primetime special anchored
by Katie Couric. His retirement is effective Nov. 16.
He was one of the network's lead correspondents for its coverage of the 9/11
attacks and followed with a series of exclusive reports on the
investigation, including details on the role of accused 20th hijacker
Zacarias Moussaoui.
Stewart was also the first to report the undercover investigation of a
terrorist cell in Lackawana, N.Y., and to report details of the FBI's
failure to "connect the dots" on the 9/11 plot.
Stewart was a regular contributor to "60 Minutes II" from its inception
(1999-2005).
"As his colleagues and competitors know, Jim is simply one of the best in
the business," said Sean McManus, the president of CBS News and Sports. "He
is exactly what every news organization wants - a highly intelligent,
eminently fair and doggedly determined reporter who also breaks big stories.
We will miss Jim very much."
Stewart began his career with CBS News in 1990 covering the Pentagon and
national security issues. He reported on the Persian Gulf War, the U.S.
support missions in Somalia and Haiti and, later, Hurricane Andrew, the
tobacco wars, the Oklahoma City bombing and the Atlanta Olympic bombing.
In a special report broadcast on CBS, Stewart broke the story that Ted
Kaczynski was about to be arrested by federal authorities as their primary
suspect in the Unabomber case.
He also broke the story that thousands of pages of government documents
related to the Timothy McVeigh prosecution had been misplaced by
authorities, a disclosure that led directly to a delay of McVeigh's
execution.
Before his move to broadcast journalism, Stewart was national security
correspondent for Cox Newspapers in Washington (1985-90). Prior to that, he
worked for the Atlanta Constitution, which he joined in 1972 as a reporter.
One of his first assignments was to go to Vietnam to write a daily column on
the war's end. During a 12-year career at the newspaper, Stewart rose to
special assignments editor and then to assistant managing editor in charge
of news operations at both the Constitution and the Atlanta Journal.
In 1969, his journalism career was interrupted by three years in the U.S.
Army, where he served as a second lieutenant in the infantry during tours in
Europe, Panama and South Vietnam.
He began his career in journalism as a staff writer for United Press
International (1967-69), working primarily in the Montgomery and Birmingham,
Ala., bureaus. Early assignments included reporting on the civil rights
movement and the Presidential ambitions of George Wallace.
Stewart's numerous national awards and honors include four Emmy Awards,
including the 2001 individual honor for best story in a national broadcast,
four Pulitzer Prize nominations, the Sigma Delta Chi Gold Medallion for
National Reporting, the Raymond Clapper Award for distinguished Washington
reporting and the National Headliner's Award.
Stewart was born in Dothan, Ala. He was graduated from Auburn University in
1969 with a degree in journalism and was a 1981 Nieman Fellow at Harvard
University.
Stewart will relocate with his wife, Jo, a former Washington-area banking
executive, to Sandestin, Fla.
Gregory S. Williams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 13:15:13 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Virgin Galactic Unveils SpaceShipTwo Interior
Concept
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain
Virgin Galactic Unveils SpaceShipTwo Interior Concept
By Tariq Malik
Staff Writer
posted: 28 September 2006
10:37 am ET
http://www.space.com/news/060828_spaceshiptwo_next.html
NEW YORK - Future passengers aboard Virgin Galactic spaceliners can look
forward to cushioned reclining seats and lots of windows during suborbital
flights aboard SpaceShipTwo, a concept interior of which was unveiled by
British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson Thursday. [See image here.]
"It won't be much different than this," Branson told reporters here at Wired
Magazine's NextFest forum. "It's strange to think that in 12 months we'll be
unveiling the actual plane, and then test flights will commence right after
that."
Virgin Galactic's spaceliners will be specially-outfitted SpaceShipTwo
vehicles built by Mojave, California-based Scaled Composites and veteran
aerospace designer Burt Rutan. The new spacecraft, designed specifically for
space tourism, will be three times the size of Rutan's SpaceShipOne, which
won the $10 million Ansari X Prize for privately-developed piloted
spacecraft capable of reaching suborbital space twice in two weeks.
The air-launched SpaceShipTwo is designed to seat eight people - six
passengers and two pilots - and be hauled into launch position by
WhiteKnightTwo, a massive carrier craft currently under construction by
Scaled Composites, Virgin Galactic president Will Whitehorn said.
For an initial ticket price of $200,000, Virgin Galactic passengers will buy
a 2.5-hour flight aboard SpaceShipTwo and launch from an altitude of about
60,000 feet (18,288 meters), while buckled safely in seats that recline flat
after reaching suborbital space. A flight animation depicted passengers clad
in their own personal spacesuits as they reached a maximum altitude of at
least 68 miles (110 kilometers).
While the spacesuit designs are not yet final, they will likely be equipped
with personal data and image recorders to add to SpaceShipTwo's in-cabin
cameras, Whitehorn said.
"If it was ready next week, I'd be there," Alan Watts, who has traded in two
million Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer miles for a ride on SpaceShipTwo,
told SPACE.com. "I'm really looking forward to it."
Branson's Virgin Galactic spaceliners are slated to roll out and begin test
flights by early 2008 in Mojave, California, with future operational
spaceflights to be staged from New Mexico's Spaceport America beginning in
2009.
"SpaceShipTwo is obviously designed as a commercial vehicle," Whitehorn
said, adding that the vehicle will have a double-skinned hull as added
safety for the passengers and pilots inside its pressurized cabin.
Passengers will have several minutes of weightlessness during the
spaceflight, and then have about 40 seconds to return to their seats,
Whitehorn said, adding that the floor of SpaceShipTwo is also designed to be
used during landing of spaceflyers fail to reach their spots in time.
WhiteKnightTwo carrier vehicles - which will be larger than a Boeing 757 jet
- will also sport the same interior of SpaceShipTwo, and will be used for to
help train passengers during a three-day orientation period before launch,
Virgin Galactic officials said.
Stephen Attenborough, chief of astronaut relations for Virgin Galactic, told
SPACE.com that the advantage of two SpaceShipTwo pilots not only allows for
redundancy, but frees one pilot to handle any passenger emergencies or
issues that pop up during flight.
Whitehorn and Branson both said that SpaceShipTwo will rely on a new type of
hybrid rocket fuel, one slightly different from the rubber and nitrous oxide
mixture that propelled SpaceShipOne into suborbital space three times in
2004.
The WhiteKnightTwo will also rely on new, cleaner-burning jet engines and
bear a close resemblance to the Virgin GlobalFlyer aircraft, which was also
built by Rutan's Scaled Composites and flew around the world without
refueling in 2005.
"If you're going to build a spaceship, you've got to build a green
spaceship," Branson said, adding that the carbon dioxide output from a
single spaceflight is on par with those of a business class seat aboard
commercial aircraft.
Gregory S. Williams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 13:39:44 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] LA: FCC Announces Details For Public Hearing On
Media Ownership
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain
The FCC has announced details of its previously announced Los Angeles field
hearing regarding media ownership. The hearing date, time, and location are:
Date: Tuesday, October 3
Part 1
1:00 PM - 4:30 PM (PT)
University of Southern California (USC)
Davidson Conference Center
Embassy Room
3415 South Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90089
Part 2
6:30 PM - 10:00 PM (PT)
El Segundo High School
640 Main Street
El Segundo, CA 90245
The purpose of the hearing is to involve the public in the process of the
2006 Quadrennial Broadcast Media Ownership Review that the FCC is currently
conducting. The hearing is open to the public, and seating will be available
on a first-come, first-served basis. This hearing is the first in a series
of media ownership hearings the Commission intends to hold across the
country.
A final roster of panelists will be released prior to the hearing. The
hearing format will enable members of the public to participate via "open
microphone."
For additional information about the hearing, please visit the FCC's website
at www.fcc.gov/ownership.
Gregory S. Williams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 8
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:12:57 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Lenovo, IBM recall 526,000 notebook batteries
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>, Dean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Lenovo, IBM recall 526,000 notebook batteries
By Philipp Gollner
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060928/tc_nm/lenovo_recall_dc_6
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Lenovo Group Ltd. (0992.HK) and IBM (NYSE:IBM
- news) are recalling more than half a million notebook computer
batteries made by Sony Corp. (6758.T) after a computer caught fire at
the Los Angeles International Airport, Lenovo and U.S. safety officials
said on Thursday.
Sony separately initiated a global replacement program for lithium-ion
batteries it made for notebook PC companies, saying short circuits could
occur on rare occasions when tiny metal particles come in contact with
other parts of the batteries.
Lenovo and IBM's move to recall ThinkPad batteries brings the number of
battery cells recalled to more than 6 million since Dell Inc.
(Nasdaq:DELL - news) in August said it was recalling 4.1 million
notebook batteries made by Sony.
Apple Computer Inc. (Nasdaq:AAPL - news) on August 25 announced a recall
of 1.8 million lithium-ion batteries made by Sony.
Lenovo spokesman Ray Gorman said the company expects the financial
impact of the recall to Lenovo and IBM to be "minimal" as Sony is
"supporting us financially in this recall."
No injuries were reported in the September 16 laptop fire in a passenger
terminal of Los Angeles airport, safety officials said.
A passenger about to board an aircraft noticed smoke coming from his
carry-on bag containing a Lenovo notebook and returned to the lounge.
Smoke and sparks were doused with fire extinguishers, a Lenovo spokesman
said.
Lenovo, the world's third-largest PC maker after Dell and
Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ - news), bought International Business
Machines Corp.'s PC division in May, 2005 and has continued to sell
machines with IBM's ThinkPad brand.
The recall affects 168,500 battery packs sold in the United States and
about 357,500 packs sold internationally, the U.S.
Consumer Product Safety Commission said
------------------------------
Message: 9
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:10:09 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Microsoft sets price for Zune, songs
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>, Dean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Microsoft sets price for Zune, songs
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060928/tc_nm/microsoft_zune_dc_3
SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) said on
Thursday its new Zune music player will be sold at a price matching
Apple Computer Inc.'s (Nasdaq:AAPL - news) market-leading iPod and, as a
result, lose money this holiday season.
Microsoft's 30-gigabyte Zune will retail for $249.99 -- 99 cents higher
than the iPod with the same amount of storage -- when it goes on sale
November 14. Songs available for download at the Zune Marketplace
service will cost about 99 cents a song, on par with prices at Apple's
iTunes, Microsoft said.
The world's largest software maker faces an uphill climb in trying to
topple the popular iPod after conceding a five-year head start to
Apple's media player.
The Zune aims to compete on features, not price, said an analyst.
"They're not getting into a pricing war," said Michael Gartenberg, an
analyst at technology and media research firm JupiterKagan Inc.
"It will be a competition of features versus features, form factor
versus form factor, winning the hearts and minds of consumers with
something other than price," Gartenberg said.
Microsoft said it needed to put a comparable price on Zune, even if it
meant that the company will suffer a loss from the device's sales this
holiday season.
"We had to look at what was in the market and offer a competitive
price," said Scott Erickson, Microsoft's senior director of product
marketing for Zune. "We're not going to be profitable this holiday but
the Zune project is a multiyear strategy."
The Redmond, Washington-based software giant has said it plans to invest
hundreds of millions of dollars to develop and market the Zune, and
acknowledged the investment may take years to bear fruit.
The rectangular Zune media player has a round click wheel and is similar
in appearance to the iPod, though slightly bulkier and has a larger
3-inch screen.
Unlike the iPod, Microsoft aims to attract users to the Zune's ability
to share photos and songs, on a limited basis, to one another.
Gartenberg said such features, although clearly different from Apple's
approach, has yet to garner consumer interest, based on Jupiter polls.
About 11 percent of U.S. online consumers were interested in such legal
file-sharing features, according to JupiterKagan research.
Interest rose to 18 percent in the younger 18 to 24 age group,
Gartenberg said. "Because consumer interest is low, there needs to be
some education in the market," he said.
Shares in Microsoft, which hired Japanese electronics maker Toshiba
Corp. (6502.T) to manufacture the Zune, rose 2 cents in early Nasdaq
trade on Thursday to $27.46.
The music player is the first step in creating a new brand of portable
devices, according to Microsoft officials, who also said a Zune phone is
in the works.
Microsoft said it will sell a music subscription pass for $14.99 a
month, allowing users to listen to any of the songs on Zune Marketplace.
It pledges to offer 2 million-plus songs at launch. After the pass
expires, users will not be able to access those songs.
For consumers looking to own a song, the Zune Marketplace will sell
tracks for 79 Microsoft points. A user can buy 80 Microsoft points for
$1 and points will also be redeemable at its online video game store,
Xbox Live Marketplace.
Microsoft said it will initially sell only music -- and no video -- at
the Zune Marketplace. The company said it was negotiating with major
record companies and labels.
Each Zune device will come preloaded with an array of songs, music
video, images and short films, Microsoft said.
------------------------------
Message: 10
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:13:53 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] U.S. homework outsourced as "e-tutoring" grows
To: Tom and Darryl <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, Dean
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, Nicole Fiedler <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, Media
News <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
U.S. homework outsourced as "e-tutoring" grows
By Jason Szep
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060928/wr_nm/life_education_india_dc_1
BOSTON (Reuters) - Private tutors are a luxury many American families
cannot afford, costing anywhere between $25 to $100 an hour. But
California mother Denise Robison found one online for $2.50 an hour --
in India.
"It's made the biggest difference. My daughter is literally at the top
of every single one of her classes and she has never done that before,"
said Robison, a single mother from Modesto.
Her 13-year-old daughter, Taylor, is one of 1,100 Americans enrolled in
Bangalore-based TutorVista, which launched U.S. services last November
with a staff of 150 "e-tutors" mostly in India with a fee of $100 a
month for unlimited hours.
Taylor took two-hour sessions each day for five days a week in math and
English -- a cost that tallies to $2.50 an hour, a fraction of the $40
an hour charged by U.S.-based online tutors such as market leader
Tutor.com that draw on North American teachers, or the usual $100 an
hour for face-to-face sessions.
"I like to tell people I did private tutoring every day for the cost of
a fast-food meal or a Starbucks' coffee," Robison said. "We did our own
form of summer school all summer."
The outsourcing trend that fueled a boom in Asian call centers staffed
by educated, low-paid workers manning phones around the clock for U.S.
banks and other industries is moving fast into an area at the heart of
U.S. culture: education.
It comes at a difficult time for the U.S. education system: only
two-thirds of teenagers graduate from high school, a proportion that
slides to 50 percent for black Americans and Hispanics, according to
government statistics.
China and India, meanwhile, are producing the world's largest number of
science and engineering graduates -- at least five times as many as in
the United States, where the number has fallen since the early 1980s.
Parents using schools like Taylor's say they are doing whatever they can
to give children an edge that can lead to better marks, better colleges
and a better future, even if it comes with an Indian accent about 9,000
miles away.
SLANG & AMERICAN ACCENTS
"We've changed the paradigm of tutoring," said Krishnan Ganesh, founder
and chairman of TutorVista, which offers subjects ranging from grammar
to geometry for children as young as 6 years old to adults in college.
"It's not that the U.S. education system is not good. It's just that
it's impossible to give personalized education at an affordable cost
unless you use technology, unless you use the Internet and unless you
can use lower-cost job centers like India," he said over a crackly
Internet-phone line from Bangalore. "We can deliver that."
Many of the tutors have masters degrees in their subjects, said Ganesh.
On average, they have taught for 10 years. Each undergoes 60 hours of
training, including lessons on how to speak in a U.S. accent and how to
decipher American slang.
They are schooled on U.S. history and state curricula, and work in
mini-call centers or from their homes across India. One operates out of
Hong Kong, teaching the Chinese language.
As with other Indian e-tutoring firms such as Growing Stars Inc.,
students log on to TutorVista's Web site and are assigned lessons by
tutors who communicate using voice-over-Internet technology and an
instant messaging window. They share a simulated whiteboard on their
computers.
Denise Robison said Taylor had trouble understanding her tutor's accent
at first. "Now that she is used to it, it doesn't bother her at all,"
she said.
TutorVista launched a British service in August and Ganesh said he plans
to expand into China in December to tap demand for English lessons from
China's booming middle class. In 2007, he plans to launch
Spanish-language lessons and build on Chinese and French lessons already
offered.
A New Delhi tutoring company, Educomp Solutions Ltd., estimates the U.S.
tutoring market at $8 billion and growing. Online companies, both from
the United States and India, are looking to tap millions of dollars
available to firms under the U.S. No Child Left Behind Act for remedial
tutoring.
Teachers unions hope to stop that from happening.
"Tutoring providers must keep in frequent touch with not only parents
but classroom teachers and we believe there is greater difficulty in an
offshore tutor doing that," said Nancy Van Meter, a director at the
American Federation of Teachers.
But No Child Left Behind, a signature Bush administration policy,
encourages competition among tutoring agencies and leaves the door open
for offshore tutors, said Diane Stark Rentner of the Center on Education
Policy in Washington.
"The big test is whether the kids are actually learning. Until you
answer that, I don't know if you can pass judgment on whether this is a
good or bad way to go," she said.
------------------------------
Message: 11
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:09:34 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] U.S. judge rules against Morpheus file-sharing
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>, Tom and Darryl
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, Dean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
U.S. judge rules against Morpheus file-sharing
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060928/tc_nm/media_streamcast_dc_3
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - In a victory for the entertainment industry, a
federal judge has ruled that the Morpheus file-sharing software
encourages millions of users to share music, movies and other works
without authorization.
U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson ruled on Wednesday that StreamCast
Networks Inc., the distributor of Morpheus, had contributed to massive
copyright infringement because it had constructed a business model that
relied on massive copyright infringement and did not attempt to block
the trading of copyrighted materials.
The case, pitting Hollywood movie studios, record companies and music
publishers against StreamCast and similar firms, dated back to 2001.
Last year, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision, ruling that
some technology firms could be held liable for distributing software
used to violate copyrights.
StreamCast, based in Woodland Hills, California, said it was considering
an appeal and maintained that it did not encourage users to infringe on
copyrighted works and never intended to do so.
"The court's ruling is disappointing. StreamCast will consider its
options, including appealing the decision," the company said in a statement.
"Morpheus is an innovative, multiuse program with legal uses that are
overwhelming. In the meantime, Morpheus will continue to discourage
users from infringing upon copyrighted works," the company said.
StreamCast was the only file-sharing company that continued fighting
after the Supreme Court ruling.
"This is an especially gratifying marker in the continuing
transformation of the online music marketplace," said Mitch Bainwol,
chairman and chief executive of the
Recording Industry Association of America, the trade group for major
record companies like Warner Music Group and Vivendi's Universal Music
Group.
"No single court ruling solves piracy or can make up for several
challenging years for the music community, but there's no doubt that
this particularly important decision means that the rules of the road
for online music are better today than they were yesterday," he said.
------------------------------
Message: 12
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:25:38 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] ESPN pulls plug on cell phone operation
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>, Dean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed
ESPN pulls plug on cell phone operation
By BRUCE MEYERSON, AP Technology Writer
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_hi_te/mobile_espn_5
NEW YORK - The planned shutdown of the Mobile ESPN cell phone service
marks the first major bust in a rush of specialized wireless ventures
targeting niche audiences they contend are underserved by the Cingulars
and Verizons of the world.
Mobile ESPN had made the same argument since its launch less than a year
ago. But in announcing the decision Thursday to close its service at
year-end, the company essentially said it will be joining the enemy: The
new plan is to cut deals with major wireless carriers so they can offer
the flashy multimedia features and content developed by Mobile ESPN to
an established customer base of millions.
Still, ESPN was quick to stress that its change in strategy had no
bearing on Disney Mobile, another ambitious foray into the cellular
market by parent company Walt Disney Co. that was officially launched
just recently.
Disney recently disclosed it has so far invested a combined $150 million
in developing Mobile ESPN and Disney Mobile, which are two of the
highest-profile and most-heavily marketed efforts to create what's known
as an "MVNO," or mobile virtual network operator.
An MVNO doesn't have its own wireless network. Instead, it puts its own
brand on another company's wireless network operator's service ? for
Mobile ESPN it was Sprint Nextel Corp. ? paying that company to connect
calls and deliver content.
Globally, there were already more than 175 MVNO brands either launched
or planned as of April of this year, according to the research firm
ARCchart.
Some of the new brands stress lower prices and prepaid offerings for
users who can't meet credit requirements. Others focus on immigrant
communities, providing cheaper international calls or screen graphics
and customer service in another language. For Amp'd Mobile and Helio,
it's the youth market.
Many analysts are skeptical whether it's a business model that can
succeed for the vast majority of these ventures given the marketing
muscle of the national players. That a brand as popular and well-funded
as ESPN couldn't make it work adds to that doubt, particularly since
Mobile ESPN developed a uniquely sophisticated mobile service compared
with the content offered on regular cell phones.
The service has signed up only tens of thousands of subscribers since it
launched the service in late 2005 and began advertising early this year,
with commercials appearing regularly on ESPN's cable TV broadcasts. That
struggle contrasts sharply with ESPN's success as a provider of news on
cell phones, where it ranks third among mobile news sources, trailing
only CNN and Yahoo, according to M:Metrics.
"There remains a very strong residual mobile opportunity for ESPN," Doug
Mitchelson, a media industry analyst for Deutsche Bank Securities, wrote
in a note to investors. "While the phone effort might have failed, the
software developed to serve the sports fan through a mobile phone was
very powerful, and a clear leader in the sports category."
Mobile ESPN plans to provide wireless service and content for its
subscribers until the end of the year, refund the purchase price for
handsets and assist customers with transferring their phone numbers to
other carriers.
Roughly two-thirds of the slightly more 100 employees at Mobile ESPN
will likely lose their jobs next year as the company transitions to a
licensing business, though some may find other positions at ESPN,
executives said.
Few of the new MVNO's, including Disney Mobile, have been willing to
disclose their subscriber numbers. Amp'd, whose backers include Qualcomm
Corp. and Viacom Inc., recently announced that it is "rapidly
approaching" 50,000 subscribers. Helio, a joint venture between
EarthLink Inc. and Korea's SK Telecom Co., has declined to quantify its
customers so far.
Mitchelson downplayed the significance of ESPN's decision regarding
Disney Mobile.
"ESPN Mobile's failure is not reflective of Disney Mobile progress," he
said. "At our recent management meeting, Disney noted that the Disney
Mobile service got off to a better start than ESPN Mobile and that a
fall marketing campaign will be underway to take advantage of the
upcoming holiday season."
Salil Mehta, executive vice president for ESPN Enterprises, said
discussions with wireless operators to adapt the Mobile ESPN application
for their cell phones have already begun, and that new offerings would
likely emerge in less than a year, but that no deals were imminent.
"The focus of the ESPN organization is that we took a risk, but in doing
so we have the benefit of having created the industry's leading wireless
application, and we're going to figure out a way to bring that to fans
and make the most amount of money," he said.
------------------------------
Message: 13
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:26:25 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] HP used phishing-style e-mail, tracing software
to track down leaks
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>, Dean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
HP used phishing-style e-mail, tracing software to track down leaks
By Jon Swartz, USA TODAY
http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20060928/tc_usatoday/hpusedphishingstyleemailtracingsoftwaretotrackdownleaks
SAN FRANCISCO - In snooping on a reporter to pinpoint internal news
leaks, Hewlett-Packard used high-tech tools common to spammers,
phishers, retailers, suspicious employers and investigators.
Those tools, including phishing-style e-mail and tracing software,
underscore the growing use of electronic surveillance to monitor
consumers' every digital move, computer-security experts say.
Misleading e-mails from HP investigators to CNet reporter Dawn Kawamoto
"smacked of phishing tactics" to trick her into divulging information,
says Dave Jevans, chairman of the Anti-Phishing Working Group.
RELATED STORY : HP chief faces congressional hot seat
But instead of fishing for her credit card information and
Social Security numbers, investigators wanted to determine who she was
talking to at the high-tech giant.
In hopes of uncovering her sources, software attached to Kawamoto's
e-mail had the ability to trace to whom she forwarded the bogus message.
When downloaded, the tracer - also called a Web bug - transmits the
Internet address of the PC that downloaded the attachment. If the e-mail
is forwarded, it can be traced each time it is opened, says Ken Dunham,
director of the rapid response team at iDefense, a VeriSign company.
The use of tracer software, which is legal, was among several tactics
used by HP to pinpoint company leaks, according to the company. HP also
obtained the personal phone records of journalists, employees and board
members and, in some cases, rooted through their trash.
On Friday, HP CEO Mark Hurd said he OK'd the faux e-mail but did not
specifically approve the use of a tracer.
HP investigators sent an e-mail and attachment from a Microsoft Hotmail
account in February, purporting to contain company information from a
Jacob Goldfarb, who doesn't exist.
The bogus sender, who described himself as a disgruntled HP executive,
said the name was a ruse to protect his identity.
Tracers are routinely embedded in spam to harvest legitimate e-mail
addresses, and by businesses to monitor the behavior of employees and
customers.
"It is the equivalent of a marketer physically following you around the
mall, and watching you shop," says analyst Rich Mogull, of market
researcher Gartner.
Web bugs don't work as well as they did a few years ago because many
e-mail programs block them, says Christien Rioux, chief scientist at
computer-security company Veracode. Their ineffectiveness has prompted
some e-mailers to place visible links to Web pages in e-mail, which the
consumer has the option of opening. But that's a tough sell for
consumers already wary of spyware and spam, Rioux says.
In the case of Kawamoto, the bug did not work. Suspicious of the
messages, she eluded the trap but won't say what she did. "I want to
keep them (HP) guessing," she says, laughing.
Not that Kawamoto is taking any chances. This month, she bought a paper
shredder for use at home.
------------------------------
Message: 14
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 16:27:08 -0500
From: Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Big cuts at NASA threaten aviation
To: Media News <medianews@twiar.org>, Dean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed
Big cuts at NASA threaten aviation
By Alan Levin, USA TODAY
http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20060928/tc_usatoday/bigcutsatnasathreatenaviation
WASHINGTON - A series of steep cuts in aeronautics research at
NASA threaten to undermine the nation's aviation industry and delay a
new air traffic system needed to prevent gridlock in the skies,
according to members of Congress, industry officials and scientific leaders.
Groups of lawmakers from both parties, academics and aerospace leaders
say the reductions are hampering NASA's ability to develop new aviation
technology.
"I think its almost criminal," said Roy Harris, retired head of
aeronautics at NASA's Langley Research Center in Virginia. "We are
dropping the ball."
NASA AID CRUCIAL: NTSB counts on agency's expertise
NASA has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in aviation funding over
the past decade and is struggling to pay for repairing the space shuttle
and for
President Bush's plan to send people to the moon and Mars. Next year,
the agency faces a proposed 20% cut in aviation research. That means
that, after adjusting for inflation, it could lose nearly two-thirds of
that research funding since it peaked in 1994 at the equivalent of
nearly $2 billion.
The agency is planning to cut $54 million - or 31% - from its effort to
study emerging technologies required for a new national air traffic
system. NASA is the primary agency researching the Next Generation Air
Traffic System, an ambitious program to replace radars with
satellite-based technology. Without increased capacity from the new
system, airlines can expect increasing flight delays, according to
government estimates.
Current NASA funding falls as much as $200 million to $300 million a
year short of what is actually needed, according to the Aerospace
Industries Association. Retired Air Force major general William Hoover,
who co-chaired a government study on aeronautics research needs, told
the House subcommittee on space Tuesday that NASA must boost work on the
air traffic system now or face problems in the future.
NASA's leaders insist that the agency has the money it needs to help
modernize the air traffic system and to maintain its place as a leading
research institute, said Lisa Porter, NASA's aeronautics head.
"I consider myself an advocate for a strong aeronautics program within
NASA, and I believe that's what we have," she told the House subcommittee.
Though known primarily for putting people into space, NASA has been the
birthplace of many of aviation's greatest innovations. The products of
its labs and wind tunnels include more efficient wing designs, quieter
jet engines and widely copied pilot safety training.
Rep. Mark Udall (news, bio, voting record), D-Colo., part of a
bipartisan coalition that is trying to restore funding to the agency,
said the cuts threaten to make NASA "irrelevant" to the aviation world.
According to more than 20 lawmakers, academics and industry and
government officials, much of the agency's work has been severely curtailed.
Among the issues:
? NASA programs that study pilot fatigue and how people make critical
safety errors are being trimmed. The budget for all aviation safety
programs is being cut by about one-third.
? While European nations are increasing funding on aviation research,
NASA is cutting back. Porter is reorganizing the agency to focus on what
she calls "fundamental research."
------------------------------
Message: 15
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 15:11:11 -0700
From: "Williams, Gregory S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Medianews] Frequent-flyer cashes in miles for space trip
To: "'medianews@twiar.org'" <medianews@twiar.org>
Message-ID:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain
Frequent-flyer cashes in miles for space trip
POSTED: 1:52 p.m. EDT, September 28, 2006
http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/09/28/space.tourist.miles.ap/index.html?s
ection=cnn_latest
LONDON, England (AP) -- The closest that Alan Watts came to experiencing
outer space was on a theme park ride -- now the British businessman has
traded his multitude of frequent-flyer miles for a real journey 75 miles
(120 kilometers) above Earth, he said Thursday.
Watts has racked up 2 million flyer miles and plans to travel on the world's
first commercial tourism flights to space, Virgin Atlantic Airways
spokeswoman Katie Francis said.
He will be among the first 1,000 people to travel on a space tourism program
in 2009 with Virgin Galactic, an offshoot of British entrepreneur Richard
Branson's Virgin Atlantic. Flights cost $200,000 (about 100,000 pounds,
euro155,000).
Watts, of London, is the managing director of an electrical engineering firm
and has taken more than 30 Virgin Atlantic flights in the last six years.
"The nearest I've come to space before was going on the Space Mountain ride
in Florida," Watts said in a statement, referring to an attraction at
Florida's Disney World.
Test flights are planned for early next year.
The businessman will have three days of training before boarding the
spacecraft, which travels at more than 3,000 miles per hour (4,800
kilometers per hour).
He and five other crew members will be able to float in zero gravity and see
the curvature of the planet, Francis said.
"When we first contacted Alan to let him know he had qualified for this
unique offer, I think he thought it was a prank call," Branson said in a
statement.
"Personally I am delighted that we have made it possible for Alan to do
something that previously he had never dreamed was possible for him."
Gregory S. Williams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
_______________________________________________
Medianews mailing list
Medianews@twiar.org
http://twiar.org/mailman/listinfo/medianews_twiar.org
End of Medianews Digest, Vol 45, Issue 1
****************************************
